Beijing Mobile's new "Qin Zi Tong" SMS service has officially begun this week. The service allows parents to send short mobile text messages to find the whereabouts of their children.

To operate the service, parents need to first apply for the service with their local telecom bureau. Then when they need to find their children, parents send "DG+their child's cell phone number" to 07111. Then the child receives a message and can respond.

Though it may appear to be easier to just send a message directly to the child's phone, the new service also uses global positioning services to allow parents to also identify their child's position anywhere in Beijing. Parents can then logon to a "Qin Zi Tong" website to track the child's movements in real-time.